HP comes up with a tablet hybrid

HP has released a tablet hybrid not unlike what Samsung showed off a day earlier. Both companies seem to think that there are those who cannot decide between a tablet and a laptop. What they have built is a device that can stand alone as a Windows 8 running tablet or connect to a keyboard that isn't a dock but a way to transform the tablet into a proper laptop.

HP's Envy x2 features a "magnetic latch," while Samsung's Slate Series 5 and Series 7 feature what it calls a "mechanical latch" so we expect a few court cases between the two of them. The HV Envy x2 weighs 3.1 pounds. When separated, the tablet portion weighs just 1.5 pounds." Together, they somewhat resemble the Apple MacBook Air, so we expect a few court cases in the future with Apple.

The Envy x2 also features an 11.6-inch high-definition touch display; an extra-bright 400-nit In-Plane Switching (IPS) panel so that it can be seen outdoors; an 8-megapixel rear-facing camera; and an HD webcam up front. HP also released two Ultrabooks. There is the Envy Touchsmart Ultrabook 4. It features a 14-inch multi-touch HD display, weighs 4.77 pounds and measures 23mm. The keyboard is backlit and the battery lasts eight hours. There's an optional AMD graphics card with 2GB of graphics memory.

If you have more cash there is the HP Spectre XT TouchSmart Ultrabook with a 15.6-inch Radiance Full HD display with edge-to-edge glass, a sunken chiclet-style keyboard, a glass touch-pad and tilted speakers with Beats Audio. It weighs is 17.9mm thin and is HP's first notebook to use Thunderbolt. It ships with HP USB Boost ports, which can charge devices even when the Ultrabook is powered down, the latest Intel Core processors, an mSATA solid-state drive with Intel Rapid Start, USB 3.0 and High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) ports.

HP has not said the price for the Envy x2 hybrid and the Envy Touchsmart Ultrabook 4, both of which will be in the shops before Christmas The SpectreXT will arrive in December with a starting price of $1,399.99.